Techie held for ‘stalking’ woman in Mumbai

An IT professional was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly stalking a woman in Mumbai late Monday night. The accused, identified as Nitesh Sharma, 37, allegedly followed the woman, who works as a fashion designer, for nearly 45 minutes, before turning up at her doorstep.

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The accused, identified as Nitesh Sharma, 37, allegedly followed the woman, who works as a fashion designer, for nearly 45 minutes, before turning up at her doorstep. (Representational Image)

An IT professional was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly stalking a woman in Mumbai late Monday night. The accused, identified as Nitesh Sharma, 37, allegedly followed the woman, who works as a fashion designer, for nearly 45 minutes, before turning up at her doorstep, according to her complaint. He subsequently stood outside her building, forcing her to call a security guard for help. The woman later registered an FIR against Sharma, who was arrested from his residence.

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Police said the woman was returning home with a friend in her car when Sharma, who is from Hyderabad and had come to Mumbai four days ago, started following her in his car — a sedan. “When… (the designer) went to a friend’s building to pick up her two children, Sharma was not allowed to enter the building. He waited outside…. When her car left the building, he continued following her,” said assistant police inspector Daya Nayak. “…The security guard, assuming he had come with the designer, asked him why he was waiting there when she had already gone to her first-floor residence. He also mentioned the flat number,” he said. Sharma then went up to her floor and rang her door bell around 2 am.”

She opened the door and inquired about him. Sharma told her that he wanted to talk to her. “She then yelled at him and called the security guard,” the police official said. “Scared, Sharma rushed down and left the building.” But he did not drive off, Nayak said. “He parked his car outside her building, in front of her balcony. He kept staring at her flat and smoked.” When the security guard questioned Sharma, he fled. The next day, the designer approached the local police station, where a case of stalking under Section 354 (D) of Indian Penal Code was registered, Nayak said. “When we tried to track the registration number of the vehicle, it turned out to be incorrect. Eventually, we managed to track the car and arrested Sharma from his residence on Tuesday.”